Elwood City: Criminal Intent
by TheUltimateCombo
Summary: Buster and Fern are Junior detectives who are investigating teen homicides, and other crimes. Ep04 "War" Differing opinions over a TV show lead to a situation which must be handled before it begins a literal war. Guest Starring George's Sister.
1. Crushed

In Elwood City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by Buster Baxter and Fern Walters, detectives of the Junior Case Squad. These are their stories...

*Breakline*

It was the first day of school. The sound of bustling students returning to the hallways filled the air. Emilia Monroe, a new student from England, carefully grabbed books from her locker, eyes flickering around to take in the throngs off students surrounding her. As she made way to close the locker door, it was slammed for her. Gasping in horror, she looked and saw a Bulldog wearing a black leather jacket leaning against the door frame. He wore shades, and a toothpick hung from his mouth.

"C-can I help you?" Emilia asked in fear.

"You the new kid?" The Bulldog asked.

"Yes. My name's Emilia."

"Barnes. I came to give you a proper welcome." He said. Emilia nodded in understanding, a butterfly making its way around her stomach. As she turned to leave, Barnes grabbed her arm pulling her in to whisper, "How about we meet up after class?"

"No! Get away!" She screamed, kicking Barnes away. The bully huffed and pushed her down. As she fell, two students, Robert and Richard, made way to apprehend him.

"Binky leave her alone!" Robert shouted, as Richard tried to pin Binky. The Bulldog broke their grip, dusting himself off and walking to class. Emilia got up slowly, when she was approached by a ginger girl around sixteen.

"Are you okay?" the girl asked.

"I'll be okay." Emilia replied.

"I'm Sue Ellen. What's your name?"

"Emilia." Sue Ellen helped the fallen girl to her feet. Picking up Emilia's books for her, Sue Ellen offered, "I can show you around today, if you'd like."

"Oh, okay." Emilia nodded her agreement as the bell rang.

*Break*

The end of the day came, and Sue Ellen exchanged farewells with Emilia, as the latter put her books back in her locker. As she locked it and walked away, she was surrounded by a group of boys, all averaging seventeen or older. They cornered her into the janitor's closet, tossing her against the mop rack. The group of boys, five in total, piled into the janitor's closet, closing the door.

The youngest one said, "Yeah boss, this was the one with that Armstrong girl."

The tallest one replied, "Ha! Is she looking for a new one? She should know better after what we did to the last one!"

Emilia cried, "I don't know what you're talking about! I just started here! What do you want with me?"

The leader bent down and grabbed her chin. "Aw look! This one doesn't know what's going on! Time to teach her boys."

*Break*

Emilia ran home at an ungodly speed, crying hysterically when she was grabbed from behind. She bucked and kicked when she was placed onto a bench. She opened her eyes to the appearance of a dark blue uniform. The officer asked, "What's wrong?"

Emilia shook her head, but the tears kept falling.

"Did someone hurt you?"

She nodded.

"Who was it?"

She shrugged, still sobbing.

"Did you take a look at them?" The cop took out his notepad and pen. The girl shook her head. The cop sighed and asked, "Can you tell me what happened?"

Again, she shook her head. The officer said, "Y'know I can't help you if you don't tell me what happened." After he didn't get a response, he said, "Well do you need a ride home, kid?"

She shook her head and took off running. The officer looked after her and sighed. As she ran down the street, a shadowy individual grabbed her. As the cop took off running towards them, the figure looked behind and ran off. When the officer arrived at Emilia's position, he cursed at the realization that he was too late. As he looked down, he noticed a red rainbow in the pool of blood.

*DUN DUN*

 _Starring:_

 _Buster Baxter_

 _Fern Walters_

 _Alan Neill the Chief_

 _Det. Robert Fisher_

 _and Lauren Slayton_

 _Elwood City: Criminal Intent_

Yellow tape littered the scene. Buster stood at the edge of the line, dressed in his PI uniform. Officially a Junior Detective alongside fellow Elwood City High student Fern Walters, it had taken a lot of sucking up to even get near a homicide. The chief, Alan Niell, had decided to bring in the Junior Case Squad for the simple reason that they would better blend in during the investigation.

An Officer nodded at Buster, who then went under the tape and entered the scene. The Crime Scene Unit had finished taking pictures and bagging evidence, and it was just Buster and Charlie Everdeen, Chief of Forensics. Buster did a full 360 of the crime scene, bending down to inspect the cuts on the body. Putting on his gloves, he touched the semi-circular slit across her throat. He cleared his throat, and Charlie looked at him.

"What is it?" He asked. Buster scratched behind his ear and replied, "this was rushed. As if the killer didn't have time to prepare his attack."

"Officer Bryant did see him." Charlie said.

"Yeah but that was simply circumstance. He noticed Officer Bryant after he heard him coming. Look at this," Charlie came closer to Buster. "She's been twisted, as a result of the fall. Now, the cut begins with precision, then all of a sudden, it splits into a slash."

"What're you getting at?"

"Stand up for a second." As Charlie complied, Buster emulated grabbing him from behind, and slashing him. Buster's hand traced across the collar bone, Charlie being six foot three, while Buster was five foot ten. "Okay. Now try me." Charlie followed along, his hand running just under Buster's jawline. Buster nodded then turned to look at Fern, who was questioning Officer Bryant. "Fern," he called. She turned to him and walked his way. "What's up?"

Buster took her by surprise, pretending to slash her accross the neck. "What the heck!"

"Sorry." He said, now turning to Charlie, "Our killer was short."

Charlie shook his head at this first grade detective work. Buster knelt down looking at an impression in the blood. He traced it with his fingers and asked, "Was there something here?"

A CSU tech looked over and said, "Yeah this," he showed Buster and Fern a bag with a rainbow fridge magnet, now reddened by the blood. With clean hand, Buster took the bag. He examined the object as it clicked to him. "This was a gay bash."

"A what?" Charlie asked in shock.

Buster showed them the bag. "See, it's a rainbow. This wasn't just some random act, it was a statement." As he mulled over this, one of the Unies called, "Hey kids, the chief wants you at the station."

*break*

"Hey cheif." Buster and Fern said unanimously.

"Grab a seat kids." The chief said. After the two Juniors sat down, Chief Neill asked, "Do you have anything for me?"

"Um, yeah." Buster fished in his pockets for his notepad. Finding it, he flipped it open, saying, "The victim's name is Emilia Monroe, her family just moved to Elwood City last month. Um, we don't have a lot on her, but evidence seems to suggest that she was a member of the LGBT community."

"And what evidence is that?" The chief raised his eyebrow as he swiveled in his chair.

"A rainbow left at the scene, presumably by the murderer." Buster answered.

"And we figure that this was some sort of statement against the community, not Emilia herself." Fern supplied.

"So why shouldn't we call in Hate Crimes?"

"Well, sir, ECH has a decent sized community of LGBT members, and we think that the killer goes to the school." Buster said.

"And we could potentially be looking at a gang." Fern added. Neill nodded in acceptance of this answer.

"Very well. Tomorrow at school I want you two to canvas, see if you can't dig up anything. Meanwhile, Detectives Slayton and Fisher will question the parents." Buster and Fern nodded, then left for home.

* _345 Lakewood Lane, Elwood City. 10:25 am_ *

A knock sounded at the Monroe Residence. A lady of about forty answered the door, opening it to find two detectives, both around thirty. The male detective had blonde swept back hair, while the female detective had brown hair, which was done up in a ponytail.

"Mrs. Monroe?" The female asked. When the woman nodded, she introduced herself. "Hi, my name's Detective Slayton, this is my partner, Detective Fisher," the blonde nodded.

"Yes, why are you here?" The lady folded her arms.

"We regret to inform you ma'am, that your daughter's been killed." Detective Fisher got straight to the point.

Gasping, the mother asked, "Why wasn't I informed? I wondered why she hadn't come home last night! My God, what happened to my baby?"

"Ma'am, we feel your daughter was the victim of a hate crime," Detective Slayton said. "Do you mind if we come in and ask you some questions?"

The woman beckoned them in and closed the door.

* _Elwood City High school. 12:00 pm_ *

At lunchtime, Buster and Fern walked over to a table that was usually occupied by the school's LGBT community club. As they sat down, Buster said, "Hello folks."

Prunella, the leader of the club, said with a smile, "Welcome! Would you guys mind introducing yourselves, maybe sharing your stories?"

"Terribly sorry, but I'm afraid this isn't a social call." Buster and Fern flashed their badges.

"Oh my, what's happened?" One girl asked.

"Do you guys have an Emilia Monroe in the club. Perhaps you met her over the summer, or maybe she visited your meeting yesterday?" Fern asked.

Sue Ellen raised her hand, and said, "I met her, but I just showed her around, she never came to the club. To be honest, I don't think she would fit."

Buster screwed his eyebrows in confusion, "Why not?"

"She was checking out one of the jocks at lunch, Zach Taylor."

Buster replied, "Oh."

Prunella asked, "I'm sorry but why are you asking this?"

"She was murdered yesterday. We think that the killer thought she was one of you." Fern answered.

Prunella's eye's darkened. "What do you mean one of _us_?"

Buster replied, "She means, one of the club. But, at any rate, thank you for your time." Buster got up and left, Fern following suit.

As they made their way away from the table, Buster started, "So, the killer must have seen Emilia with Sue Ellen, and figured that Emilia was Sue Ellen's... girlfriend."

"Poor Emilia was a victim of circumstance." Fern said.

Buster stopped in his tracks, and looked behind him at the table they had left.

"Sue Ellen said that Emilia wouldn't have 'fit.'"

Fern turned to him. "Yeah, why?"

Buster rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "No reason."

As he turned to walk once more, Fern looked at the table, locking eyes with Sue Ellen.

*break*

Sue Ellen walked behind the school, stumbling upon a girl with violet hair and a condescending attitude.

"This spot's already taken, moron." The girl said. Headphones were perched in her ears, death metal blaring loudly.

Sue Ellen walked up and ripped the headphones out, tearing the cords and dragging the girl's Ipod away. Stomping on the device, Sue Ellen looked at girl and said, "By me."

Instead of picking a fight, the goth girl put her hands up and walked away.

"Heh, nice one, Sue." Out of the shadows came Rattles Ciccone, four other boys following him. Sue recognized them as Slink, Billy, Kiefer, and Chester, a new member of Rattle's gang.

"So we did the job, where's our money?" Billy asked. He got a sharp jab in the gut by Slink.

"You do realize that the cops are onto us right?" Sue Ellen asked angrily.

"Ha ha! You mean the Junior Squeaks? They can't do us nuthin'" Rattles replied.

"Unless you make sure that they can't tie me to anything, you won't get paid." Sue offered.

"Hey, how are they gonna find out?" Rattles asked. Suddenly concerned, he added, "She won't squeal will she?"

Sue Ellen just raised an eyebrow.

*break*

Detectives Fisher and Slayton were leaving the Chief's office as Buster and Fern arrived. Chief Neill gestured to the chairs in front of him while he was looking through the updated case folder.

"You told me this was a hate crime." He said, putting down the folder.

"The investigation was preliminary at that time. We now know that Emilia's death was one of circumstance." Buster said.

"Nice way to try and save yourselves, but a girl was still murdered. I don't care if it was mistaken identity, a wrong place wrong time scenario, or simply someone who thought she was a Martian, we can't just jump to conclusions!" The Chief sighed. "CSU has something for you two. Go check it out."

*break*

Charlie brought them a rainbow fridge magnet with the letters "ECH" in silver.

"What's this?" Fern asked.

"That's the magnet we found at the scene. Took a helluva lot of cleaning, but we got it done. Look on the back."

Buster turned over the magnet. "ECH LGBT community. Together we stand tall." He looked at Fern, "How would the killer have this?"

* _Elwood City High school. 8:00 am_ *

"We only hand those out to members." Prunella said, as she put her books in her locker.

"One per member?" Fern asked.

"Mmhmm." Prunella confirmed.

"What happens if a person loses one of these?" Buster asked, caressing the magnet.

"Well, we do hand out updated ones every so often." Prunella turned to Buster, "Can I see that one."

As Buster handed it to her, she nodded and hummed. Buster cocked his head, "Is something wrong?"

"This is an old one. The new magnets have a deep blue color for the school's initials." Prunella handed Buster back the magnet. "Whoever you're looking for, they'll already have a new one. If they are a member at all."

"If." Fern echoed ironically.

Buster scratched his neck and motioned for Fern to follow him. As she ran to catch up with him, she asked, "What's up?"

"Prunella said she only gives those magnets to members. Yet she doubts that a member committed the crime." Buster recapped.

"And we know that Emilia didn't get a chance to join the group." Fern added.

"And she would've never joined the group according to Sue Ellen." Buster considered. "Remember the slogan? 'Together we stand tall.' Prunella's covering for someone."

"Sue Ellen?"

"Let's find out." Buster replied.

*break*

Sue Ellen walked into the cheery smelling Sugar Bowl, sliding into Prunella's booth. A blonde waitress of nineteen came to get her order. Sue Ellen ordered a Blondie, and looked as the waitress walked away. Turning back to Prunella, she said, "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes. Buster and Fern talked to me today."

"What did you tell them?" Sue Ellen asked.

"They just asked about one of our club magnets." Prunella replied, shrugging in confusion. "I told them that we only give them to members."

Sue Ellen sat back as the waitress came back, setting the brownie a la mode down on the table. As Sue Ellen cut in to it and took a bite, Prunella said, "Buster's not in our club. Neither is Fern. And they aren't real chummy with anyone in the club. I don't think they're messing with us Sue. I think someone in the club really did do it!"

Sue Ellen took another bite of her brownie. "Who do you think it could be."

Prunella thought for a minute then looked. Sue Ellen cocked her head slightly. "What?"

Prunella started floundering, and Sue Ellen repeated, "What?"

"I-I have to go!" Prunella got up and left. When she walked out the door, Sue Ellen looked at the waitress, who was standing behind the counter. The waitress smiled, and Sue Ellen smirked back. Just then, Detectives Slayton and Fisher walked in. Fisher did more than capture the waitress's attention, and Slayton noticed. As they sat down, Slayton smiled at her partner.

"The waitress likes you, Rob." She said. Rob looked over his shades and turned to look at said waitress.

"Laur, please. I could be her dad!" He replied.

Lauren could barely repress a giggle as the waitress made her way to the booth. "Here she comes."

Rob cleared his throat, shuffling awkwardly in his seat, as Sue Ellen got up and left. As the waitress went to clean the booth Sue Ellen had just left, she found no signs of a tip. Shrugging, the waitress went about her duty, clearing the booth, then returning to service the detectives.

* _349 Lakewood Lane 5:00 pm_ *

Buster and Fern approached the Armstrong Residence, knocking on the door. Mrs. Armstrong answered, Buster said, "Hi Mrs. Armstrong. Is Sue Ellen home?"

"No, she hasn't come back yet. Is there something wrong?" She replied.

Buster looked down the block and saw the Monroe house. "What do you know about the Monroes?"

"I introduced myself to them soon after they moved in. They're very posh." Mrs. Armstrong replied.

Buster scratched behind his ear in thought. "Have you seen them at any events? Do they socialize a lot?"

Mrs. Armstrong folded her arms with a puzzled look as she thought. "They came to the county fair. And Sue and I have seen them at the Ice Cream Shop."

"Did Sue Ellen ever talk to the Monroes?" Buster asked.

"She did seem very interested in their daughter, Emilia I think. But no, she never formally met them."

Fern's phone rang, and she turned to answer it. Buster nodded, saying, "Thank you ma'am. Have a nice evening."

As Mrs. Armstrong closed the door, Buster asked, "What is it?"

Fern hung up and said, "The Chief wants us. Now."

*break*

Chief Neill brought Buster and Fern into the waiting room, where they were met by Prunella.

"This young lady says she has some tips for our murder investigation. Question her."

Buster made way to sit down, as Fern guarded the door.

"Hey Prunella. What's up?" Buster asked.

"I know how to find out who the rainbow belonged to."

"You do? Then by all means." Buster gestured to her.

"Each one has a serial number that's unique. That corresponds with a member number." Prunella said. "So let me see it."

*break*

Fern and Buster sat at the library, flipping through various books on economics. Buster had a pencil in his ear, still thinking about the case. Two shadows appeared over their table. They looked up and saw Rob, who nodded, and Lauren, who smiled in greeting before sitting down.

Rob picked up a book on business statistics, then tossed it aside. "We have a new development in the case. A janitor saw Rattles Ciccone and four other boys corner Emilia into a janitor's closet. He hesitated before contacting police, but the chief believes him. So he wants us to pick up Rattles and his gang."

* _Elwood City High school 8:00 am_ *

Rattles and his boys were hanging out in front of their lockers, when Buster, Fern, Detectives Fisher and Slayton, along with some Uniforms, approached them.

"Hey what's going on?" Billy asked in irritation.

"Rattles Ciccone, Slink Wilson, Billy Stanton, Keifer Hudson, Chester Munson, you are _all_ under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder." Detective Fisher announced.

"Hey, we didn't commit no murder, man!" Rattles cried.

"Do you really want everyone else to hear the other charge?" Rob asked, and Rattles paled as he was handcuffed and led off along with his crew.

* _ECPD Interrogation Room_ *

"I didn't rape nobody!" Rattles shouted, banging his hands on the steel table in front of him.

"Oh yeah? The Janitor saw you, and your friends dragging Emilia Monroe into a utility closet." Fisher countered. Buster looked up from his pad to stare at Rattles, pen twirling in his fingers.

Rattles tensed, then confessed. "Okay. We took her into that closet, but we just kissed her! That's all!"

Detective Fisher leaned onto the table, and stared into Rattles' eyes. He started in a low voice, "Are ya sure? I mean, I can understand, y'know, teenaged boys and all. It just starts with kissing..."

Rattles was sweating. "No," he shouted.

"And things get outta hand..." Rob continued.

"No. NO! That didn't happen! We just kissed her, and then we roughed her up! That's it!" Rattles said. Detective Fisher slid off of the table, and sat down. "So tell me what happened. Who put you up to it?"

Rattles panted before answering, "Sue Ellen."

Fisher and Buster exchanged a look.

"She approached me during lunch, she told me that she didn't think that Emilia was gonna fit. So she, she gave me the code word." Rattles explained.

"What code word?" Buster asked.

"She told me, 'Rattles, you know I love you.'"

Fisher looked to Buster, who shrugged. As they exited the room, Chief Niell told them, "Bring her in."

*break*

Buster and Fern walked up to Sue Ellen as she was leaving the Sugar Bowl. She turned to look at them, and said, "Hey guys! What's up?"

"Sue Ellen, you need to come with us." Fern said, grabbing her arm and pulling her gently. As Buster grabbed her other arm, Sue Ellen asked them, "Am I under arrest or something?"

Fern snorted, "Or something."

* _ECPD Interrogation Room_ *

Sue Ellen sat down in the chair occupied by Rattles only an hour prior. She looked around the room, as Fern circled the table. Buster just looked uninterestedly at his pad, clicking his pen.

"Um, I'm sorry, is there a reason that I'm here?" Sue Ellen asked.

"Oh yeah. Just give us a minute." Buster replied off-handedly. Sue Ellen huffed in irritation, and Buster began.

"So um, Emilia eh?" He started.

"What about her?" Sue Ellen asked.

Buster looked at her, shocked. "You don't know?"

Sue Ellen looked at Fern. "Know what? I don't understand?"

"When did you meet Emilia?" Buster asked, his gaze reverting to the pad.

"A few days ago, at school." Sue Ellen replied.

"That's when you met her, formally. But you knew who she was." Buster said.

"No. I had never seen her before."

"But of course you had! You saw her at the county fair. She'd go to the Sugar Bowl often! Heck, you lived right down the street from her!" Buster said with a disbelieving smile. Sue Ellen tensed a little, and Buster pressed. "You studied her."

He cocked his head. "What was it that interested you? Was it the blonde hair? The British accent? Maybe you were just amazed by her."

"Are you saying I had a crush on her?" Sue Ellen asked in offense.

"Y-you turned red for a minute there. When you saw her at school, you saw your chance to get close. But everything went south when she noticed, what was his name? Zach Taylor? Did that disappoint you a little?"

"Why would I be disappointed?" Sue Ellen scoffed, but Buster noticed her irritation rising.

"Because you got your hopes up for nothing! I mean, you spent the day showing her around, and she looks at some _jock_!" Buster sympathized. Sue Ellen smirked a bit at that comment.

"And so you set out to teach the new girl a lesson. Show her how things work in Elwood City. You hired Rattles and his crew to rough her up." When Buster said this, Sue Ellen snapped her head at Buster. "Oh we talked to Rattles. He told us how you gave him the code word. How many times have you used the code word?" Buster grabbed a manilla folder that was sitting by his chair, opening it and pulling out four photos of teenage girls.

"Mabel Johnson, two years ago. Danielle Smith, four years ago. Teresa Williams, three years ago. Stephanie Jones, last year. The police reports on them only say that they all died soon after they came to Elwood City. The last person seen with them? Well you should know." Buster pressed, slouching back into his chair.

"And you know something? You could've gotten away with it. If only pride hadn't gotten in the way." Buster pulled out the rainbow magnet. "Pride. The seventh deadly sin. What made you get careless? I mean really, only members have these," Buster chuckled, turning the magnet over in his hands, "sans me of course. All a person would need to know is who the magnet belongs to. Oh wait!"

"You can't trace that back to me!" Sue Ellen shot out. Buster slid the magnet over to her, and pointed to seven indents in the mold.

"Y'see that? That's a serial number. Better yet, it's a member number." Sue Ellen turned to Buster in horror. "Yeah, we know the procedure. Prunella was kind enough to help us out."

"That little witch." Sue Ellen muttered.

"Where you just tired of people disrespecting you? Disappointing you? So you had to send a message. In case anyone else dared to follow to follow in the footsteps of these four," Buster pointed to the pictures in front of him. Sue Ellen started breathing harder.

"Zach Taylor's a jerk. She would've learned sooner or later." Sue Ellen said.

"So you decided to teach her, sooner, rather than later." Buster gathered his notes together and closed the folder. Fern grabbed Sue Ellen's shoulder, and the cat girl stood.

"Sue Ellen Armstrong," Fern began, pulling Sue Ellen's hands behind her back. "You are under arrest for the murder of Emilia Monroe," The handcuffs clicked shut. "You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used in the court of law."

 **Created By:**

 **The Ultimate Combo**

 **A/N: I wrote this because I have been on a Law and Order kick, and wanted to play with detectives' personalities.** **Therefore, Buster was written in the style of Criminal Intent Detective Robert "Bobby" Goren, while OC Detective Robert Fisher is written in the style of SVU Detective Elliot Stabler.**

 **For political and personal religious reasons, I wish that this work be considered neutral in regards to the LGBT community, as this is used (shamelessly) as a plot element for the sake of story, and in no way looks to deface said community.**

 **For anyone reviewing this story, any questions, PM me. Anyways, just enjoy the story, and leave a nice long review when you're done! If you for some reason want me to turn this into a series, just add that in the review! G'Night everyone.**


	2. Fatal Attraction

In Elwood City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by Buster Baxter and Fern Walters, detectives of the Junior Case Squad. These are their stories...

*Breakline*

Arthur Read left Red Lobster with his girlfriend of one month, Ariana White. After suffering a nasty breakup with Francine Frensky, the timid Aardvark had been comforted by this gold haired beauty. In his eyes, nothing could go wrong. As they left the restaurant together, they snuggled close to each other, Arthur offering Ariana the world on a silver platter. As he drove her home, he offered, "My folks have a cabin up North, and I'm having a party there in two weeks. You're invited of course." He smiled, causing Ariana to giggle.

"It's a date." She said. Arthur nodded.

*break*

Ariana was at Forever 21, picking up a scarlet scarf, showing it to her her friends, Joanna and Maria. As Ariana checked the pricetag, she was approached by Francine and Muffy. Francine snorted at the scarf. "Red's such a loser color."

"Um, actually Francine, that's scarle-" Muffy was jabbed before finishing her sentence.

Ariana took in Francine's attire, which hadn't changed over the years.

"But," she began. "You're wearing red."

Blushing and enraged, Francine asked, "What did you say?"

Muffy intervened, "Francine, calm down!"

Mustering courage, Maria spoke up. "She said you're wearing red."

"Are you calling me a loser?" Francine yelled at Ariana.

Suddenly, a brown haired guy came running up to them. "Babe, what's wrong?" He asked Francine. Suddenly calm and serene, Francine replied with a smile, "Nothing, my dear. Everyone, this is Neil. He's in chemistry."

"Yeah, and it doesn't take a scientist to know that Fran and I definitely have chemistry!" Francine rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's terrible joke.

"We'd best be going, Neil dear." Francine dragged him away. Muffy just shrugged at the teens they had come to embarress and walked away.

*break*

Francine and Neil sat at the theater, kissing each other in the back row when Francine noticed Arthur and Ariana enter the room. Sighing in frustration, Francine broke away. Bewildered, Neil looked and saw Arthur.

"Hey, is that your ex?" He asked. Francine nodded, watching Ariana snuggle against Arthur's arm. Her eyes turned dark.

*break*

Ariana was walking home that night, phone in hand, texting Arthur. Suddenly, she was struck from behind, hitting the pavement face first. The phone smashed against the sidewalk, as the perp dragged Ariana into an alley.

*DUN DUN*

 _Starring:_

 _Buster Baxter_

 _Fern Walters_

 _Chief Alan Neill_

 _Det. Robert Fisher_

 _and Lauren Slayton_

 _Elwood City: Criminal Intent_

Buster took in the damp, mold filled scent of the alleyway. Gloves on his hands, he carefully bent down to examine the crime scene. The victim wore a purple halter top, which exposed a bruise on the small of her back. Buster's fingers circled the outline of the bruise, feeling the indent when he was finished. CSU was checking trash cans for a murder weapon. Buster picked up stray strands of golden brown hair, exposing the victim's neck. A CSU Tech motioned Buster away as she took more pictures.

"What can you tell me Sherlock?" Charlie asked.

Thrusting his hands outwards, Buster stepped back and said, "She was hit from behind." Twisting his head at an angle, he continued, "And dragged here. But the perp wasn't strong enough, they struggled with her."

He moved in once more to inspect her forehead. "Her head took the brunt of the injury once she was dragged here. Y'see, the side of her face has scuff marks, but the forehead has signs of beating."

He traced the three red lines on her head. Pressing into them, he concluded, "The perp was tired once they dragged her here, so her forehead was smacked against the dumpster, maybe twice, since she isn't bleeding here."

"Found it!" One of the CSU Techs shouted triumphantly after pulling out a silver baseball bat from one of the dumpsters. Showing it to Buster, he said, "We can see if we can find prints on this."

As the CSU Tech walked out of the alley, Fern walked in.

"The phone can't be saved, but the SIM card is mostly intact. CSU is heading it to the lab now for recovery," Fern updated. Kneeling down, her face lit up with recognition. "Oh no," she muttered.

Buster turned to look at his partner. "What is it?"

"Her name's Ariana. She's in my English class," She looked at Buster. "She was Arthur's girlfriend."

*break*

Phones ringing off the hook, and busy cops filing reports filled ECPD as Buster and Fern entered the Chief's office. Sitting down, Chief Neill simply stated, "As you've figured out by now, it's another high school investigation. So, when you guys are at school, you're on the clock. Find me answers."

As Buster and Fern got up to leave, Neill added, "And no preliminary motives this time."

* _Elwood City High school 7:30 am_ *

Buster walked up to Arthur at school that Monday. Stuffing his books into his locker, the Aardvark looked concerned. Buster casually leaned back against a neighboring locker. He cleared his throat. Arthur and him hadn't talked since Buster took the summer off investigating Junior Crimes. Arthur hadn't approved of the job, and the two best friends had a fight that rocked even the shores of their families.

Buster cleared his throat. Arthur turned to look at him.

"Hey," Buster said. Arthur slammed his locker.

"That's all you have to say to me? 'Hey'?" Arthur then noticed the saddened look on Buster's face. Then he remembered that his friend was a Junior Detective. "What's wrong Buster?"

Buster looked around for a way to spark the conversation. Finally he asked, "How's things?"

"Ugh, horrible! DW's being a rebel and she's not even thirteen yet, but Mom still thinks she's an angel. She's been ignoring Kate and Kermit, and I'm the bad one in her eyes." Arthur continued, "As if that wasn't enough, Dad's got a drinking problem now. His catering business just sunk, and that coupled with DW's behavior and Mom's dissonance, he's taken to the bottle."

Arthur banged against his locker. "My life sucks now, Buster. And then you abandonned our friendship."

"You could've joined me," Buster offered.

"With my grades? I'd be lucky if I got a job washing dishes at _Mario's_." Arthur sighed, looking down. Turning to look at Buster, he asked. "So what? More bad news?"

Clearing his throat again, Buster said, "You never told me you had a new girlfriend. What happened to Francine?"

"Ask her! All I know was, we went to see Bratzilla 5: Return of the Brats, and when I said, 'you were like that back in third grade,' she snapped! She said, 'What does that mean?' I replied, 'Well you're much nicer now!' 'Save it Arthur Read!'. A few weeks later, this Neil guy's girlfriend dies, and Francine swoops in to comfort him."

Buster took time to store this information before finally saying, "Ariana's dead."

Arthur looked at Buster, tears mixed with agonizing fury burning in his eyes. He swung out and hit Buster, who quickly acted to restrain his buddy. Pinned to the lockers, Arthur started crying. Slowly releasing his pal, Buster consoled, "I'm sorry Arthur."

Arthur slid to the floor. Raising his head to the ceilling, Arthur asked, "What have I done? Why do you hate me?"

Kneeling down to face his friend, Buster said, "We'll fix this Arthur."

"You can't bring her back. Just, find out who killed her. Make them pay." Arthur pleaded. Nodding, Buster promised, "I will."

*break*

At lunchtime, Buster and Fern met up. Sitting down together, Buster asked, "What did you find out?"

Pulling out her notepad, Fern said, "Ariana was apparently at the movies with Arthur Saturday night, she had even bought a scarf earlier that day for the occasion."

"Anyone who may have seen them at the theater together?" Buster took a sip of Coke.

"Muffy said that Francine and her boyfriend Neil were supposed to go as well. Francine didn't comment when I questioned her, and Neil only said that when Arthur arrived at the theater, Francine got tense."

"I'll revisit Francine. Arthur told me that they had a pretty bad misunderstanding. Seems like she's the type to take revenge." Buster commented.

"Well I don't know, but it was strange that she didn't reply to me at all." Fern noted.

"For now, let's keep this from the Chief. We need a concrete suspect before reporting our findings."

*break*

Francine grabbed her books before heading to History. Neil patted her on the shoulder and kissed her cheek as he went by. Francine gave a light smile, and scowled as he left. As she turned down the hallway, Muffy bounced into her.

"Muffy!" Francine cried.

"Francine, tell me you didn't do anything!" Muffy pleaded, tears in her eyes.

"What are you getting on about?"

"Please, I'm too glamorous for jail!" Muffy said. Pushing Muffy away, Francine continued on her way.

* _3594 Cherry Street, Elwood City. 5:45 pm_ *

Buster knocked on the door of the Read house. A timid Kate Read, now eight, opened the door. Buster smiled at her, and said, "Hey Kate! How's it hanging?"

"C-can I help you?" Kate asked. Buster noticed that only her head was peeking out from behind the door.

"Kate..." Before Buster could finish, he heard David's voice. "Kate! What's taking so long."

"Kate, let me in." Buster ordered. When Kate hesitated, Buster peered inside and saw David coming to the door, shirtless. By his staggering pose, Buster could tell he was drunk. Bursting inside, Buster took out his handcuffs and ordered, "David Read, hands behind your back!"

David pushed Buster into a nearby lampstand. "Don't tell me what to do you little brat!" Picking up a nearby vase, David crashed it onto Buster's back. The young detective went down, fishing out his radio. Buster pressed the button. "All units, this is Buster Baxter! Send assistance to 3594 Cher-" A blow to the back of the head sent Buster into unconciousness.

*break*

Several police cars piled up in front of the Read Residence, as SWAT Troops prepared to storm the house. Detectives Fisher and Slayton where geared up in SWAT vests, service pistols in hand. As the SWAT Sergeant gave the order, two dozen officers burst into the house. One found Buster on the floor, moving to attend to him, while the others searched each room. As they got upstairs, they found Kate Read face down in her bed, while another team found David Read sitting in the Master Bedroom, already dead.

"Call a bus!" An officer shouted.

The sounds of stirring SWAT Officers brought Buster back to conciousness. As he slowly got up, he saw paramedics and stretchers carrying out David and Kate Read. As the house cleared, he saw Arthur at the sidewalk, looking on in horror. Buster was pulled to his feet by Detective Slayton, who carried him outside to a separate ambulance.

*break*

Buster awoke in the hospital with an IV needle in his arm. He was greeted by his fellow detectives: Slayton, Fisher, and Fern.

"Hey big guy!" Detective Fisher said, ruffling Buster's head. "You took quite a hit back there."

"Is Kate okay?" Buster asked, fighting a searing migraine. Detective Fisher shared a look with his partner, Lauren opting to give him the news.

"They didn't make it. Either of them," she said. Buster closed his eyes tiredly, tears slipping out.

Fisher looked at Fern. "He was close to them?"

Nodding, Fern replied, "They were like his second family. They were his best friend's dad and baby sister."

Turning to Buster, Fisher said, "That was a darn foolish thing to do. If you ever see something like that again before you enter the Academy, call and wait for proper backup. I mean my God kid! You don't even have a baton or something!"

"When do I get out?" Buster asked.

"The doctor said that you're free to go in the morning," Lauren smiled. Nodding against his pillow, Buster replied, "Good."

* _Elwood City High school 4:44 pm_ *

Fern walked through the hallways of ECH, the only one on the case now that Buster was on sick leave for the week. Fern noticed Arthur leaving the counselor's office, and went to speak with him.

"Hey Arthur," she greeted. "I'm sorry for your losses."

"Heh-yeah!" Arthur laughed sarcastically. "All three of them!"

Putting an arm around him, Fern said, "It's not your fault."

"No. You're right. It's Buster's!" Pushing Fern away, Arthur asked, "What did he do!? Huh!? What did he do!?"

"He was doing his job!" Fern explained.

"If he didn't show up, Dad and Kate would still be alive!" Arthur tried to reason within himself.

"If Buster hadn't shown up, who knows what could've happened to Kate! He was trying to protect her."

At these words Arthur sobered up. And his anger took a new direction. "What did that pig do to Kate!?"

"We can't say your Dad did anything! Buster just wanted to make sure Kate was safe. He only came to talk to you. Don't fault him for what he couldn't control!" Fern reasoned. Bending his head, Arthur ran a hand over his face.

"What's next, Fern?" Arthur turned to his old friend. " _Who's_ next?"

Fern looked downward. She couldn't answer him. She knew that promises were too easily broken. Her own father had made that clear when he left when she was seven. Throughout the years, her life had spiralled out of control. When she accepted the offer to become a Junior Detective, her life held meaning. Sadly, she got to see all the terrible things people went through more often than before. Arthur was broken, she could see the pain in his eyes. Despite everyone else's troubles, Arthur had got hit the hardest. Around his twelfth birthday, his parents had had another kid, Kermit Read, and from there, things got rough. His parents grew distant, his siblings acted out, and his social life suffered.

Now, all these years later, his life began crumbling again. Harder. Faster. Looking up, Fern just said, "I'll buy you a smoothie. Sound good?"

Shaking his head, Arthur spat bitterly, "What's the use."

As he walked away, Fern hung her head. Even when they solved Ariana's murder, Arthur's family would still be broken.

* _725 Rivendale Avenue, Elwood City. 4:00 pm_ *

Buster walked down the street towards the house of Francine Frensky. The Frenskys had moved from their old apartment on the east side when the apartments got shut down a few years ago. Now, they lived almost directly down the street from Buster's condo.

Knocking on the door, Buster took the time to think about his approach. Laverne Frensky opened the door. Recognizing the bunny, she greeted Buster with a smile.

"How can I help you today?" She asked.

"Is Francine home?" Buster responded.

"Why yes! Come on in!" Laverne offered. Stepping inside, Buster took a look at the place. Various soccer trophies adorned the shelves. Pictures of Francine speckled the walls, and large family gathering pictures had Francine as the center of attention.

"Wow, you have a lot of photos of Francine," Buster mused aloud.

"Oh my yes! She's our pride and joy!" Laverne replied.

"She's your golden globe, alright." Buster mentioned, sighting more pictures. As Laverne called Francine, Buster turned his gaze to the stairs. As Francine came down, she caught sight of Buster and stiffened. The detective leveled his gaze. Giving her mother a plastered smile, she turned back to Buster as Laverne left the room.

"What do you want Buster?" She asked in irritation.

"Tell me about Neil." He instructed.

"He annoys the crap out of me." Francine muttered. Buster smirked, raising an eyebrow.

"He's a cute guy, but, he doesn't 'put out', if you know what I mean." Francine stated. Buster raised his eyebrows and nodded in understanding.

"Well certainly he wouldn't want to ruin your chances of being a good soccer player. He definitely wouldn't want you to shame your family. He's a good guy then." Buster reasoned. Francine scoffed in disgust.

"I hate this family. Since Katherine eloped, I've become the center of focus. I'm supposed to be their perfect little angel!" Francine added, "Sometimes I just wish that they get crushed."

"That's why you're so jumpy? Volatile?" Francine spun around. Buster was back in detective mode. "Couldn't handle the pressure at home?"

Francine seethed with anger.

"So you snapped on Arthur." When she started slowing her breathing, Buster pressed. "And so when Arthur hooked up with Ariana, you took it out on her,"

"What are you talking about!?" Francine shouted.

"You killed her! You couldn't stand the thought of Arthur moving on, so you killed her." Buster accused. To his surprise, Francine cooled down.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk detective. Too soon. Way too soon," Francine smiled wickedly. "You may leave now detective."

As Buster turned to leave, she added, "Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

Exiting the house, Buster cursed himself for thinking he would've got to her. He had to save his questions for when she was sitting at ECPD, sweating. But now, she was onto him, and he was certain she knew something.

*break*

Buster opened his door to the sight of Fern holding out a grape and pickle smoothie. Grabbing the ice cold drink, Buster said, "Thanks."

"May I come in?" His partner asked. Buster stepped aside and Fern walked inside. Sitting down at the kitchen table, Fern said, "I talked to Arthur today."

"How is he?" Buster inquired.

"Not good. He was talking to the school counselor, Miss Greenleaf. His life is ashes, Buster. If not now, then it soon will be." Fern expressed.

Buster sipped the weird combination of smoothie, and thought as the clashing flavors swirled in his mouth.

"What can we do?" Fern asked.

Buster looked down at his smoothie, as if searching for answers in the icy liquid. Finally, he had his answer. "We solve this case, for one. And once we've done that, we be there for him. As a support team."

* _Elwood City High school, 12:30 pm_ *

Arthur walked out of the cafeteria, Francine hot on his tail. When he turned around, she socked him in the jaw. Hitting the lockers to his left, Arthur went down. Francine grabbed the aardvark by his collar, dragging him to his feet. Punching him in the stomach, Francine slammed Arthur into the other lockers. Buster and Fern ran up to restrain Francine, pinning her arms behind her back, pulling her away. Buster put space between them.

Arthur spat, "You crazy wench!"

"What did you tell them, Arthur Read!?" Francine yelled. "You're so full of it! That why we broke up! You are such a nobody!"

"Okay, okay! What's going on here!" A school guard finally came to the scene. Fern pulled Francine and pushed her towards the officer.

"Get her out of here. Please." Buster requested. The security guard nodded, and pulled Francine down the hall, and away from the wreckage.

Neil pushed his way out of the crowd, moving towards Arthur. Buster stepped in front of him, and Neil asked, "Woah, is he okay?"

Buster raised his eyebrow. "What?"

"Is he okay?"

Buster searched the teen's face in scrutiny, before stepping aside. To his surprise, Neil attended to Arthur like a medic to a soldier. When Neil mentioned that losing a girlfriend was hard, Buster grabbed Neil by the arm.

"Get up. Your coming with us."

"What for?"

"We just have a few questions."

* _ECPD Interrogation Room. 5:45 pm_ *

Detective Fisher greeted Neil as he entered the room. Buster was already sitting inside. Neil looked uncomfortably as the two detective conversed. Fisher left the room, and Buster began.

"So, Neil. Tell me about yourself," Buster offered.

"Oh, well my family just moved here from New Jersey a few months ago. A couple of friends' families also moved here recently," the teen began. "Not much to tell about me. I had a close friend, who happened to be a girl, and everyone used to call us a couple."

"But you weren't?" Buster inquired, clicking his pen.

"Oh no! I mean, she was pretty, but, we were just close. Maybe down the line we would've become more but, I'm just not the dating sort. All that stuff Francine and I do, that's mostly all her. I'm not even really all that comfortable with kissing, but, y'know that's what she wants." Neil replied.

"Apparantly, Francine wants a lot more. I talked to her." Buster revealed. Neil just shrugged. Buster pulled his chair closer to the table. Folding his hands in front of him, Buster said, "Tell me more about your friend. What was her name?"

"Sandra. Sandra Cooper. Sweet southern gal if there ever was one. She loved horseback riding too. Her folks owned a ranch down south. Our families would visit it every year." Neil smiled. "She uh, she was my best friend. We'd talk and joke and laugh all at once. We'd come to each other with our problems, and we'd solve them for each other."

"You guys sure sounded like a couple." Buster chuckled lightly.

Neil nodded. "Maybe so, but we were always like that. Ever since we were little."

"What happened to her?" Buster inquired.

"One day after our families moved here she didn't show up for school. The cops said she overdosed. But it didn't make sense, she never took drugs. I knew something was wrong, but they never investigated." Neil locked his gaze with Buster. Tears were welling in his eyes. "Then along came Francine. And she asked me what happened. And when I told her, she said, 'You deserve better than a junkie girlfriend'! Can you believe that? And I remember thinking, 'wow, what a [ ],' but she seemed like a nice girl."

"You ever notice her acting strange?" Buster asked, flicking his pen from hand to hand.

"Yeah," Neil nodded again. "Arthur Read. She was fixated on him. I asked about it and she mentioned the whole 'we had a fight' thing. But she couldn't let it go." Neil turned his head to the side. "That Saturday we were at the movies, and Arthur walked in with his new girl. Francine turned dark. I called her Sunday, asked if she was alright."

"What did she say?" Buster raised an eyebrow.

"She said, 'I'm fine.'" Neil replied, tears threatening to spill.

* _725 Rivendale Avenue, Elwood City. 7:00 pm_ *

Detectives Slayton and Fisher knocked on the door. When Francine answered, they said, "Francine Frensky, please come with us."

Francine looked stunned, but complied. As they handcuffed her, Oliver ran to the door.

"What are you doing with my daughter!?" He shouted.

"Francine Frensky you're under arrest." Fisher announced.

"Don't worry Frankie," Oliver assured. "I'll call a lawyer!"

* _ECPD Interrogation Room 8:00 pm_ *

Buster and Francine sat opposite each other, as Fern circled the room like a shark.

Annoyed, Francine asked, "Why am I here?"

"We know everything." Buster simply stated. "Neil told us everything. And you know something? You wasted your time."

Francine looked at Buster strangely. Even Fern looked befuddled.

"What? What are you talking about?" Francine asked.

"Sandra Cooper. Neil and her weren't involved. They were just close friends. Like Fern and I," Buster waived a hand at his partner.

Francine shrugged. "I don't see what difference it makes. She's dead."

Buster was taken aback in mock offense. "Ooh! Don't speak ill of the dead, Francine!"

"I'm sorry?"

"Neil told us you called her a junkie," Buster stated. "Was that before or after you buttered him up?"

Francine turned to look at Fern, who shrugged.

"No see, I get it now. You wanted Neil, but you felt threatened by Sandra," Buster straightened, then proceeded. "But the opportunity arose, and you took _action_."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

" _Of course_ you do! I mean, Sandra's not dead a good half hour, and you're already pushing Neil into a relationship!"

"When Neil and I started, she was dead for a week. Her funeral had already happened!" Francine spat.

Just then, a lawyer entered the room. "Miss Frensky, Donald Blake. You don't have to answer anymore questions."

"I didn't ask for a lawyer!" Francine yelled.

"But of course you have a lawyer! Your family's rich! Not Crosswire rich, but your family prefers a simple life, doesn't it?" Buster asked.

Francine stiffened and Mister Blake said, "You don't have to answer that!"

"Don't tell me what to do!" Francine shouted.

"Is that it?" Buster continued. "Everybody telling you what to do? Your parents always putting you on a pedestal? Everything you did, they were there for. All your soccer games,"

"Stop!"

"Your chess tournaments,"

"Quit it!" Francine covered her ears.

"Your spelling bees." Buster pressed. Francine ballled her hands into fists. "And so you needed a world where you'd be in control. Where _you_ called the shots. Where you didn't have people always expecting of you."

Francine began seething. Buster smirked, he had her. It was time to go into endgame.

"You had it with Arthur! But then he said that you used to be a brat, and so you realized that you lost control. And then Neil came along. So sweet, so innocent, easy to control. And you sprung! First came getting rid of the barriers. Sandra Cooper. She didn't overdose, did she?"

Francine looked aside in anger.

"You fed her those pills, didn't you?" Buster asked. The lawyer put his hand on Francine's arm. She shook it off.

"But at any rate, you had Neil. But then, what's this? Arthur's got an Ariana now. And that angered you."

"No," Francine shook her head.

"How _dare_ he shake free of your control!?" Buster sympathized. "If Neil didn't work out, you needed someone to fall back on! And so what happened? You followed her Saturday night."

Buster walked around and knelt down next to Francine. "Neil told us that he called you Sunday. You told him that you were fine. Y'know why? Because Ariana was taken care of. Arthur was back as an option."

"Why would I be jealous over Ariana? I have Neil!" Francine countered.

"It didn't matter if you had Neil! You just wanted Arthur to suffer for breaking away from you. And anyway it took to sieze that control, you would take it!" Buster finished.

Francine's breathing hitched, and she asked, "How could you know about Sandra?"

Buster was truly taken by this.

"Miss Frensky, be quiet!" The lawyer ordered.

Francine smiled as she tilted her head. "Muffy. She must have told you. That was supposed to be our little secret. Spoiled brat. Can't keep her mouth shut!"

"Miss Frensky, that's enough!"

"A bit too late, don'tcha think?" Fern asked the lawyer.

"Actually," Buster told Francine, "Muffy didn't tell us anything. We guessed."

Fern moved to handcuff Francine. When the deed was done, Francine stood.

"You will go to Juvie. And after that, you're going to jail." Buster said. A Uniform opened the door, and Fern escorted Francine out.

*break*

Buster knocked on the door of the Read Residence. When Arthur opened the door, the aardvark asked, "Who did it?"

"Francine." Buster replied. "I'm sorry Arthur."

Arthur nodded. "I'm leaving Buster."

"Oh." Buster replied. "Where to?"

"Mom's sending Kermit and I to live with Aunt Loretta. I get to live with Cousin Mo, Buster!" Arthur extended his arms in sarcastic joy. "Un-believable!"

"Hey, she's not so bad! Put in a good word for me, though. And keep in touch." Buster said.

"I will." They both cast their gazes downward. "Y'know, despite our hiccups, you were the best friend I ever had. Ariana was slowly coming close but," Arthur stopped.

"Well hey, remember when I went with my dad? I came back! This isn't the end!"

"I'm not coming back Buster. Now that Dad's gone, Mom doesn't want us. DW's still her little angel though," Arthur chuckled dejectedly for a minute. "Be good Buster."

As the door closed, Buster walked away. When he got to the sidewalk, he stopped, and looked behind him. He looked down the street, the memories he had forged with his best friend floating through his head. Buster fished out his phone and dialed Fern.

" _Hello?_ " Fern answered.

"Hey Fern. Do you wanna get a smoothie or something?"

" _Sounds good. I'll meet you at the Sugar Bowl._ "

"Great. Talk to you soon." He hung up, turning to walk down the street.

 **Created By**

 **The Ultimate Combo**

 **A/N: I would like to say that this will be a series. A third episode is coming soon, and will be in production following this chapter. Updates will come as consistently as possible.**

 **Also, if the first chapter was not your cup o tea due to the storyline, I hope you feel more comfortable with this chapter, it's honestly less controversial. For those of you still struggling with the idea of Junior Detectives, they exist, just not in this fashion. Creative liberties are taken here.**

 **End Credits will replace Author's Notes as of this chapter:**

 **Inspired by: Law & Order: Criminal Intent**

 **Writen by: TheUltimateCombo**

 **Starring:**

 **Buster Baxter Fern Walters**

 **Alan Neill Lauren Slayton**

 **Robert Fisher**

 **with**

 **Arthur Read Francine Frensky**

 **Muffy Crosswire Neil Parker**

 **Kate and David Read**

 **and Donald Blake**

 **Elwood City: Criminal Intent (c) TUC Productions**

 **Arthur (c) Marc Brown**


	3. Secrets

**A/N: The following program is rated TV-14 (SD). Viewer discretion is advised.**

In Elwood City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by Buster Baxter and Fern Walters, detectives of the Junior Case Squad. These are their stories...

*Breakline*

Brain left his therapist's office looking dissheveled. Eight years ago, when Elwood City was hit by Hurricane Sadie, Brain had suffered with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Deep down, he had never recovered. So, his therapist, Paula Russel, had encouraged him to continue his sessions. They lasted into his teen years.

Brain was seventeen now, and he was a considerably handsome teen. He was uncomfortable with his therapy now, knowing that these "help sessions" were wrong. They had long gone past a professional relationship.

As he walked home, he ducked into the Sugar Bowl, ordering a chocolate malt. Sitting on a bar stool, he took the time to mull over his dilemma. He was going to tell someone.

*break*

At dinner, Brain toyed with his food disinterestedly.

"What's wrong Alan?" Mister Powers asked.

Putting down his fork, Brain began, "Mom. Dad. I have something to tell you."

*break*

Brain was jogging when his phone rang. Pausing to take a swig of water, he answered.

"Hello?" he panted.

" _Hello Alan! We were supposed to meet each other today._ "

"Doctor Russel? Look, I'm sorry, but I don't want to see you anymore!" Brain said, shifting his eyes.

" _Alan, you need our therapy sessions. You're truly getting_ better."

"It's Brain, and I'm just not comfortable with this arrangement anymore!"

He heard her chuckle. " _Always using the big words, Alan! I like that about you._ "

"Please, I don't want to talk anymore!" Brain hung up.

*break*

Doctor Russel stirred from sleep as her phone rung. Reaching over to the nightstand to grab it, she answered, "Hello?"

She heard tensed breathing, followed by, " _I'm sorry, Paula! I didn't mean what I said today!_ "

"Alan?"

" _I want to see you_."

*break*

Brain broke apart the kiss, and Paula sat up, moving to leave the room. Brain sat on the bed, waiting for her to return. Suddenly, a towel was wrapped around his neck from behind. Brain sputtered for air, losing conciousness. The towel was tied as tightly as possible, and Brain was thrown to the floor.

*DUN DUN*

 _Starring:_

 _Buster Baxter_

 _Fern Walters_

 _Chief Alan Neill_

 _Det. Robert Fisher_

 _and Lauren Slayton_

 _Elwood City: Criminal Intent_

CSU Techs swept the apartment, snapping pictures of everything, from the bedsheets, to the bathroom, to the kitchen. The red towel attributed as the murder weapon was in a large forensic bag for analysis. Brain had already been placed in a body bag when Buster and Fern entered the scene. Buster was fascinated by the door to the Master Bath. Opening it, he said, "Fern watch this."

Watching him enter the bathroom, Fern waited patiently for him to resurface. Instead, she was tapped on the shoulder. Turning to look, she jumped as she saw Buster standing there. He grinned mischievously as he made move to show Fern the connected bathroom. Entering the bathroom, where CSU Techs were dusting for evidence, Buster said, "See this door?"

"Yeah." Fern nodded.

"It's a closet door." Buster opened the door to shelves full of towels and toiletries. Moving deeper into the closet, Buster said, "Now here's another door."

He opened a door leading into the living room/kitchen divide.

"So what do you think?" Fern asked.

"Well, the killer could have come from the bedroom, possibly the lover?" He turned to Fern, who shrugged. "Then they must have entered through the closet, into the bathroom, and back in the bedroom, taking Brain from behind."

"Good hypothesis, Buster." Charlie Everdean congratulated. "However, I feel it's more likely that this was a pure ambush job. Not in anyway related to the, um, _situation_ going on."

Suddenly, two detectives came rushing in. Walking up to Charlie, they announced themselves.

"I'm detective Stacey Bennet, this is my partner Adam Shouffer." The female introduced. "We're with Sex Crimes."

"Sorry to disappoint, but noone here was raped." Charlie insisted.

"Technically and legally, yes. Alan Powers was involved in a sexual relationship with his therapist against his conscience, which is the same as against his will. The abuse started when he was fourteen." Detective Shouffer stated.

"How do you know that?" Fern asked.

"Mr. Powers' parents contacted us yesterday." Detective Bennet supplied.

Buster and Fern shared a look.

* _ECPD 4:00 pm_ *

The two Junior detectives entered the Chief's office. Chief Neill motioned to the chairs in front of him.

Buster and Fern sat down as requested.

"You're off this case." The Chief announced.

"Why?" Buster asked.

"It's out of our jurisdiction." He replied.

"A murder was still commited."

"Likely by the same person Sex Crimes is after." Chief Neill said uninterestedly.

Buster looked at Fern, and then said. "We don't know that."

The Chief quirked an eyebrow.

"So we approach it like a normal homicide. We'll leave the other crime to SVU." Buster countered. Chief Niell sighed, pinching his nose.

"Very well. But if I even suspect that you're investigating outside the homicide, I will put you on suspension. I am not risking my butt for you two!" The Chief stated.

* _3133 West Pier Road, Elwood City. 2:33 pm_ *

Buster and Fern walked into Elwood City's psychiatric clinic, the office of doctor Paula Russel. Fern walked up to the receptionist, while Buster took a look around the waiting room. By the time Fern was finished, Buster had thumbed through half the magazines in the waiting area. He found one with Paula on the cover, and cocked his head with interest. He flipped open the magazine, then carefully located the page advertised on the front. He scanned through the article, locating key words detailing doctor Russel's work. He found a picture of her and a client, Devon, aged sixteen at the time of the photo. The way they were posed, it looked unprofessional. She was much too touchy-feely for Buster's tastes.

"Hey Buster, come on!" Fern called. Buster looked up, then took a picture of the article with his phone.

*break*

"Are you looking for dual therapy?" Doctor Russel asked. She was dressed in a low-cut business shirt, with a knee high skirt, and tall black heels. Posed with crossing legs, Buster kept finding a lump in his throat.

"Actually, I was hoping that you could try to help my partner with his 'emotional' issues. Being a Junior Detective takes its toll." Fern replied, nodding.

"Hmm, some clients are tougher to crack than others," Paula began. "But I'm sure I can get him to open up." She smiled. Buster looked out the window.

"Excellent. Will you need parental consent?" Fern asked.

"I'm sure Mrs. Baxter doesn't have to find out. It would be hard for her to handle her son needing therapy." Paula smiled again.

"Do you have any other patients from ECH?" Buster muttered absentmindedly.

"I had one patient, his name was Alan Powers. It's a shame how he died." Paula said.

"Yeah, shirtless and in your bed," Buster muttered, and Fern set her face in her palm.

"I don't know what you were told, but Brain was simply spending the night. And besides, he was seventeen."

"Which means what exactly?" Buster turned around.

Gathering her things, Fern interrupted, "Thank you for your time Doctor."

As Fern got up and exited the room, Buster shot a cold glare Paula's way, following his partner out.

*break*

Phones rang off the hook as Buster and Fern sat at their desks. Buster had his phone connected to the laptop, and was clicking away at his screen. After the fifteenth click, Fern asked, "What are you doing?"

Buster raised a hand and motioned her over. Fern got up and slinked her way over to his desk. When she got there, Fern took in the photo in it's entirety.

"Who's this?" she asked.

"Devon Matthews," Buster replied. "Run his name through the database."

"To find?"

"Find out if he too met an untimely end." Buster ordered.

Fern cocked her head. "How did you get this?"

Buster sat back and smiled. "Well while you were sweet talking the reception desk, I did a little detective work of my own."

"You do realize that this is crucial info to the Sex Crimes case?" Fern reminded.

"Sure," Buster replied. "But we won't tell them about it."

"Buster..."

"Despite what the Chief says, this is a homicide case. And this evidence will be helpful in nailing whoever killed Brain." Buster said.

Fern nodded. A Uniform waived them over, and told them that CSU needed them.

* _Crime Scene Unit 5:44 pm_ *

"You wanted us Charlie?" Buster inquired.

"Suppose there were more people in the room, than we thought?" Charlie began. Buster and Fern shared a look.

"I don't see Brain as the type." Buster replied. "Wait, why?"

"My boys found three sets of foot prints in the apartment. Also, the fingerprints on the towel were hard to reconstruct, but they're different than those of your suspect's."

"Paula's prints are in the database?" Fern asked.

Charlie nodded. "In 1999, she was questioned in the Devon Matthews case," Buster and Fern looked at each other again. "Ironically enough, SVU was after her then too. No convictions were made."

Buster nodded. "What can you infer from the prints?"

"Whoever choked out your victim was at least fifty years of age. Male, possibly 6'6. Whoever he was, if Doctor Russel knew he was there, she kept him hidden."

"You know the height?" Fern asked in surprise.

"The way Brain was strangled, we conclude that he was sitting on the bed when it happened. The width and height of the bed, along with the angle of the towel marks, infers that the perp was bending slightly. The unmatched foot print also gives us reason to believe that this was a tall guy." Charlie explained.

The Junior Detectives thanked Charlie and walked out.

"So, Paula must've been waiting to ambush Brain." Buster figured.

"Maybe he wanted to cut her strings?" Fern wondered.

"Or," Buster's brain went into detective mode. "She found out that he told his parents. Maybe, he was acting strange, or he didn't want to see her."

"Then how did she get him to her apartment?"

"Maybe he changed his mind. Decided that he couldn't keep away."

"And she prepared for him," Fern nodded.

* _Glennview Apartments, Building 304, Apartment J, Elwood City. 10:00 am_ *

It was a particularly warm Sunday, Buster kept wiping his brow with a handkerchief. Fern thanked the landlord for letting them into the building. Fern knocked on the door to Apartment J. Buster muttered about the heat behind her. Paula answered the door in a most revealing bathrobe, then said, "I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else."

Fern gave her a flat look, "Get dressed. We need to ask you some questions."

When Paula closed the door, Fern turned to look at her partner. Buster's face was red with embarrassment, wiping his face furiously, and finding himself intrigued by the carpet.

After ten minutes, Paula opened the door again, this time dressed in her business attire. She offered the detectives in, and closed the door behind them. Fern and Buster noticed candles lit softly on the table. Buster took a small peek from afar into the bedroom, and he noticed an abundance of red.

"Expecting someone?" Fern asked.

"I'm inviting a friend over for dinner." Paula replied.

Buster checked his watch, "At ten in the morning..."

"Well," Paula began with a seductive smirk.

"Save it," Fern interrupted. "We just wanted to ask you about some of the events surrounding the murder."

Paula sat back in her chair, crossing her legs. "Go on."

"Did Brain contact you at all that day?" Fern began.

"Actually, I called Alan. We had an appointment to meet that day." Paula replied. "He said that he was uncomfortable with our relationship."

"It wasn't professional?" Buster asked.

"We were friendlier than that." Paula bit her lip as she smiled.

Fern looked down at her pad.

"If he didn't want to see you, how did he wind up here?" Buster asked.

"He called me at 2:00. Said he wanted to talk." She said. Her smile however, betrayed condescension.

"So, how did he die?" Buster asked.

"What?" Paula asked in shock.

"You were both here, and if you're innocent, who killed him?" Buster asked simply.

"A burglar got in. He must've been hiding in the bathroom. I saw him flee." Paula said. Buster noticed that her hands were now intwined tightly. She was sitting straiter as well.

"Don't worry. We know you didn't kill him," Buster saw her sigh. "But we think that you might've known who did it."

"Do you have any enemies?" Fern asked.

"No. I can't think of anyone who would wish to harm the people I know." Paula answered.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. Paula got up to answer it. A caucasian male around fifty-five entered.

"Hello Paula." He smiled.

"Mark." She made move to take his coat. "Mark" had flowers in his hand, and he took in the sight of the young detectives.

"I didn't know you had company."

"Oh, these young detectives were just leaving." Paula said, and Fern and Buster got up to leave. As they walked out of the door, Buster asked, "How tall are you?"

Mark shifted his eyes in confusion. "Six foot six. Why?"

"Just thought I'd ask. Have a good day."

As the door shut, Buster asked Fern, "Did you notice that Doctor Russel called Brain, "Alan"?

Fern nodded. "She was very odd, don't you think?"

"She knew that she was innocent without an alibi. However," Buster said. "She's involved."

"Mark. He fits the description." Fern then said, "But Paula must know a ton of men."

"Who she invites over to dinner." Buster looked at the apartment they just left.

*break*

"They know something, Mark." Paula warned.

"They're just kids. I highly doubt that they can get you into trouble." Mark assured.

"They're real detectives, Mark. They operate as agents of the ECPD. They can report what they find."

"Paula my dear," Mark kissed her. "You're overreacting. Now come, let's start our day together."

* _1930 Harlem Avenue, Elwood City. 3:00 pm_ *

Mrs. Powers leaned against Mr. Powers shoulder, crying softly. Buster and Fern were there to recieve some answers. Mr. Powers was the first to speak.

"We got him that therapist when he was nine. She was a good therapist. He recovered from his PSTD." He said.

"Wait," Buster looked at Fern. "Brain had Post Traumatic Stress?"

"When hurricane Sadie hit," Mrs. Powers spoke up. "He was paranoid. We hired her to help him."

"But then she wanted to keep him in therapy. We said no, but she insisted. So we gave him." Mr. Powers said.

"Did you ever notice Brain acting funny?" Fern asked.

The Powers shared a look, and they bent their heads in thought. Mr. Powers said, "When he was thirteen, he had his first crush."

"Well," Buster replied, "That's normal."

"It was on Doctor Russel." Mrs. Powers clarified.

Buster asked, "Well what did you do?"

"We tried to tell him that she was too old, but he didn't listen. Eventually he told her." Mr. Powers answered.

* _ECPD 5:30 pm_ *

In the Chief's office, Buster and Fern reported to the chief what they had found. Chief Neill was sitting back in his chair, his fingers intertwined with interest.

"We figure that Doctor Russel is behind the murder, but we don't think she committed it." Fern informed.

"She orchestrated it. She was worried that Brain would break away from her." Buster supplied. "It's happened before."

"It has?" Chief Neill raised an eyebrow.

"Devon Matthews, sixteen years ago." Buster said.

"Well, we have a pattern. I'll send Fisher and Slayton over to pick her up." The Chief said.

"Don't forget her boyfriend Mark." Fern said. The Chief screwed his eyebrows in confusion.

"We think he could be the one who killed young Mister Powers." Buster added.

* _Elwood City Mall Plaza. 6:00 pm_ *

Paula and Mark exited the mall with scores of bags in hand. Paula smiled sweetly at Mark, replying lowly, "Let go back to my place."

"I know somewhere that's cozier." Detective Fisher spoke. They turned to look as he and Detective Slayton walked up to them.

"Where did you have in mind?" Mark asked.

"ECPD," Fisher replied. "Mark, what's your last name?"

"Stolworth, why?"

"Well then, Mark Stolworth you're under arrest for murdering Alan Powers." Detective Fisher then read Mark his Miranda Rights.

"You too Paula," Lauren proceeded to arrest Doctor Russel as well.

"This is a mockery of justice! I didn't do anything!" Paula insisted.

"You just didn't get your hands dirty." Slayton remarked.

* _ECPD 7:45 pm_ *

Detectives Bennet and Shouffer entered the precint, demanding to see the Chief. Chief Neill came out to meet them.

"Where's our perp?" Shouffer asked.

"She's been arrested for murder. After we're done with her, you'll get your chance with her." Chief Neill assured.

"We should be in there." Detective Bennet spoke up.

"Trust me, our best detectives are on it." Chief Neill said.

*break*

Mark Stolworth sat in the chair opposite that of Buster's. Buster looked at his pad, clicking his pen away as he figured out his approach. Detective Fisher sat against the two way window.

"How long have you and Doctor Russel been involved?" Buster asked.

"Paula and I have been off and on romantic partners for most of our careers." Mark replied.

"You guys never got married." Buster mused.

Sighing, Mark replied, "She could never commit. She was always looking at younger guys."

"How young?" Fisher inquired.

"Teenagers. Barely clearing the age of consent. It sickened me." Mark straightened before continuing. "I mean, she could've been the Powers boy's mother for God's sake!"

"Tell me what you knew about their relationship." Buster instructed.

"He was her therapy patient. But it went way past profession once he admitted that he had a crush on her." Mark replied.

Buster crossed something off on his pad, and looked up. "What did she do?"

"She gave into him!" Mark looked both ways before leaning in and whispering, "She didn't even wait this time!"

"And all this time you two were what?" Fisher asked.

"We were colleages. Romantic friends. But we could never be in a relationship. Paula was too wild. She catered to younger guys because she felt control over them. I can tell you of at least three of her patients right now, that's she's either seduced, or tried too." Mark said.

Buster shared a look with Fisher.

"Do you know how many times I've tried to understand why she keeps robbing the cradle? What do they have that I don't?" Mark confessed. "And Alan wasn't the first one to try to break free. Devon Matthews tried. And he ended up dead too."

"Why?" Buster asked.

"Because Paula had me kill him."

Buster and Fisher shared a look.

"Where's your DA?" Mark asked. "Tell them I want a deal."

Behind the two-way, Chief Neill stood with the team District Attourney, Jennifer Brooks. Neill looked at her, and she nodded.

"He confessed," she said. "If he can supply me with more information, he'll be good."

"What kind of information are we looking for?" Chief Neill asked.

"More names of more victims. I want every piece of evidence against Paula." ADA Brooks replied.

"You're trying the SVU case too, aren't you." Neill asked.

Jennifer nodded in reply. "The two cases are intertwined, there's no way to keep them apart."

Chief Neill nodded and returned his gaze to the screen. He knocked the screen, and Buster got up. As Buster exited the room, Neill said, "We've got Mark, now go fry Paula."

Buster nodded. He entered the second interrogation room, which held Paula, Fern and Detective Slayton. When Buster entered, Slayton left.

"You offered me a therapy session," Buster began. "But I feel much better when I ask the questions."

Paula rolled her eyes. Fern whispered something into Buster's ears, and he nodded.

"Mark is the worst boyfriend. The worst friend period." Buster said. Paula turned and looked at him strangely.

"I mean," he continued, "he gave you up without hesitation."

Paula said, "I don't believe that."

"The DA's giving him a deal. Do you know why?" Buster asked. Paula shook her head. "He confessed to killing Alan Powers. But what he told us was that he did it under your instruction."

Paula huffed. "That's insane, he was obviously jealous."

"He told us that you like younger men." Buster mentioned.

"I just prefer younger patients. They're easier to help." Paula said.

"You mean easier to control. For your own personal _needs_." Buster stared at her grimly. "Like Devon Matthews."

"That was years ago!" Paula exclaimed.

"Why does that matter? You killed him too. You just had Mark do it though. And you never got caught until now." Buster said.

"They couldn't convict us. You have no evidence."

Buster laughed a raucous laugh. "You," he laughed again, " _literally_ gave us all the evidence we needed."

Paula flashed red with embarrassment.

"He was killed in your room. And we know that you were involved with him. Against his will, I might add," Buster continued.

"He had a crush on me. And I don't believe in denying others what they deserve." She smiled.

"Are you hearing yourself right now?" Buster asked.

"He appreciated me, like Devon did." Paula said.

"Until he realized that you were three times his own age." Buster cocked his head and squinted his eyes in disgust. "And when he called you that day, he wanted to end it, didn't he?"

"He was confused. That night he was practically begging me to take him back." She smiled seductively.

"And you took him back. But he paid for it." Buster said. "You set him up. After he called you contacted Mark. You had another job for him, didn't you? Just like with Devon Matthews."

Paula chuckled. "Well my, aren't you the detective. I'll tell you what: when I get out, I'll reward you for such a good job." She uttered the last part lowly.

"Are you sure? I might not be your type then." Buster smirked. Paula backed up and scowled at the Junior Detective. Two Uniforms entered and grabbed Paula. Buster stood up. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Doctor Paula Russel, you are under arrest for the murder of Alan Powers. Anything you say can, and most definitely will be used against you in the court of law."

As the officers led her out, Fern sighed.

"You can't even trust doctors these days." She said.

"I know one thing," Buster replied, "I'm never going to therapy."

 **Created by:**

 **The Ultimate Combo**

 **A/N: The heaviest subject I've ever touched on, but I wrote this because things like this do happen, however rare you think they are. Next episode coming soon...**

 **Inspired by: Law & Order: Criminal Intent/Special Victims Unit**

 **Created, Written, and Produced by: The Ultimate Combo**

 **Starring:**

 **Buster Baxter, Fern Walters**

 **Chief Neill, Robert Fisher**

 **Lauren Slayton**

 **with**

 **Charlie Everdean, Paula Russel**

 **Mr. and Mrs. Powers**

 **Alan Powers, Mark Stolworth**

 **and Jennifer Brooks**

 _ **Arthur**_ **(c) Marc Brown**

 **Elwood City: Criminal Intent (c) TUC Productions.**


	4. War

In Elwood City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by Buster Baxter and Fern Walters, detectives of the Junior Case Squad. These are their stories…

*Breakline*

Ladonna was on her computer, writing away a fan work for her favorite TV show, _Andy and Company_. She and Fern were the most capable writers among their peers, but from time to time, others would try their hand at fanfiction as well. A recent writer on the website by the username "Sunflower" had started picking fights about who the show's star, Andy, should hook up with in the end.

It had puzzled Ladonna, but she had shrugged it off. She was known for her stories featuring Andy and Cassidy, but "Sunflower" was adamant that Andy and Lillie were the proper pairing. For weeks, this continued, and finally Ladonna found out that they both went to Elwood City High. "Sunflower" prompted a meeting at school the next day, and Ladonna agreed.

*break*

Ladonna entered the high school, and was immediately greeted by Fern.

"Hey Ladonna!" The Junior Detective spoke.

"Hey! Are you guys on a case?" Ladonna asked excitedly.

"Not yet. So are you truly going to meet with 'Sunshine'?" Fern asked.

"That's the plan!" Ladonna replied. "I'll catch up with you later!"

With that, the two went off.

*break*

At lunch, Ladonna sat at her table, but she caught no sign of "Sunshine". Eventually, a moose girl sat down at her table.

"Hi," she greeted. "I'm Daisy Lundgren. But you may know me as Sunshine."

"Ladonna Compson," Ladonna offered her hand, "LouisianaGirl24! So what did you want to talk about?"

"It troubles me that people don't appreciate the great couple Andy and Lillie make." Daisy said.

"Well, Lillie can be quite snippy sometimes, but I don't really mind it if other people like them." Ladonna replied, sipping on a milkshake.

"I honestly can't believe that Andy and Cassidy are a pairing! I mean, Cassidy sucks!" Daisy scoffed.

"Well I appreciate that Cassidy's a generous person. She even held a charity ball at the school!" Ladonna mentioned.

"As if! It was just an act. Cassidy stole the episode that Lillie was supposed to shine in!"

Ladonna simply sipped her milkshake. She looked around finding something to say.

"Well why do you like Andy and Lillie?"

"They're just so adorable! Besides, if you analyze every episode, there's hints that they'll be a couple in high school! Like the time she told Andy, 'Leave me alone, Fuzz face!' It totally means that they'll be super close in high school." Daisy explained. Ladonna rolled her eyes quietly.

"Well Cassidy did admit to having a crush on Andy,"

"Hogwash!" Daisy interrupted. "She's just a lying skunk."

"Y'know," Ladonna made a show of checking her watch. "We should finish this later."

"Okay! Let's meet at the Sugar Bowl!" Daisy offered. Ladonna agreed.

*break*

Ladonna regaled Fern with her encounter with "Sunshine". Fern simply listened, being the ever wise one among the two. Fern shrugged and said, "She's just opinionated. It's nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, but she made me feel stupid," Ladonna lamented.

"Trust me, that's just how people are. You and I have strong opinions too." Fern said pointedly.

Ladonna conceded that. She then told Fern about the Sugar Bowl meeting. Fern nodded her approval.

"Just get to know her better." Fern said. As she walked off, George ran up to Ladonna.

"Ladonna, don't meet with Daisy!" George warned.

"Why?" Ladonna was confused.

"You called Lillie snippy. That's my sister's berserk button! If anyone says anything bad about Lillie, she gets really, really angry about it!" George said.

Ladonna laughed it off. "What's she gonna do? Kill me?"

*break*

Ladonna stood waiting outside the Sugar Bowl. No one was inside, except the waitress, and the cook. Ladonna impatiently checked her watch. Suddenly, she was grabbed from behind, a knife slashing against her quickly. As the waitress ran outside, she saw a figure running off, and Ladonna was lying on the ground.

*DUN DUN*

 _Starring: Buster Baxter_

 _Fern Walters_

 _Chief Alan Neill_

 _Det. Robert Fisher_

 _Det. Lauren Slayton_

 _and ADA Jennifer Brooks_

 _Elwood City: Criminal Intent_

CSU was photographing the crime scene. Buster stood off a ways, and stared at Ladonna's lifeless corpse. Fern questioned the waitress who admitted that she hadn't seen much. When Charlie finished bagging evidence, he motioned Buster over. Buster walked over and knelt down. Ladonna had fallen in a twist, the back of her head sustaining the brunt of the injury.

Buster set his arms at a distance, and twisted left and right, attempting to figure out how the murder was committed. Charlie watched Buster for a minute, before asking just what he was doing.

"The killer jumped her." Buster backed around Ladonna and towards the side of the Sugar Bowl. "They grabbed her, and made a slash across the neck. That isn't what killed her."

"What did?" Charlie asked.

"When the killer ran off, Ladonna twisted, the sudden rush of blood, along with hitting her head on the ground really messed her up." Buster said.

Charlie sighed. "Well, it's time to make another phone call."

* _255 Boston Boulevard, Elwood City. 6:00 pm_ *

Detectives Fisher and Slayton sat inside the Compson Home. Fisher talked to Bud, Madison, and Gussie, while Lauren handled the parents.

"I have a daughter too. I can't imagine what it would be like to lose her." Detective Slayton consoled.

"Our little girl was so sweet. She didn't have any enemies." Cisley cried into her husband's shoulder.

"Did your daughter participate in online chat rooms or forums?" Slayton asked.

"She used to write for this fanfiction site, fanworks dot net." Rufus supplied.

"She loved this children's show, Andy and Company. It was her favorite thing to write about." Cisley added.

"She said that there was someone new to the fandom who kept arguing about something regarding a, pair of shoes?" Rufus said.

"Pairing, hon. It means a couple." Cisley clarified. Detective Slayton nodded and wrote down in her pad.

Fisher was playing cards with the siblings. As he shuffled for another hand of Go Fish, Fisher asked, "Did your sister have any problems with anyone?"

"My sister didn't have beef with nobody!" Bud spoke up.

"Since when do you say 'beef'?" Madison asked.

"Since the police showed up!" Bud replied.

"So everyone liked your sister?" Robert asked. The Compson children just shrugged and nodded. "Did she have any hobbies?"

"She was a writer. She used to be an original novelist. But she said that writing fanfiction gave her ideas, so she started doing that." Madison replied.

"That sounds cool." Fisher said. He looked back into the living room, and Lauren waved him over. Making a sigh of disappointment, he said, "I'm sorry guys, but I have to go. It was nice meeting you guys though."

"You too Detective!" Bud said in farewell. Madison and Gussie just waved.

As Fisher entered the living room, Slayton gathered her things, and they thanked the Compsons for their time. Leaving, Fisher asked, "What's up?"

"We have a lead."

* _ECPD 7:45 pm_ *

Buster, Fern, Lauren, and Robert stood in the briefing room. Chief Neill had gotten everything he needed to hear. He told the Junior Case Squad that they would be calling in the help of TARU, the Technical Assistance Response Unit. TARU was on it's way to the Compson residence to dump Ladonna's computer, and get everything they needed.

"You two," Neill pointed at Buster and Fern. "Canvas the school. You two," he pointed at Slayton and Fisher. "Sit tight. You've questioned the parents, now it's time for the Juniors to do their thing."

* _Elwood City High school 12:00 pm_ *

Buster stood by Fern's locker as his partner put up her books. Buster noticed that Fern had been quiet for most of the morning.

"Fern what's wrong?" Buster asked.

"I know who did it." Fern said.

"Even if you did, we've got to do this. How else will they confess?" Buster reasoned. Fern sighed, closing her locker.

"Do we have any leads?" Fern asked.

"Rob texted me that TARU just finished the dump." Buster said.

"And?"

"She had been having intense private message sessions with a Sunflower." Buster added. Fern nodded.

"Chief wants us to check her out and question her, doesn't he?" Fern asked. Buster nodded in reply. The two shared a confident look, then walked off to find their suspect.

They found Daisy Lundgren sitting in the school library. She was on her laptop, typing away furiously. Fern and Buster walked up behind her, flanking her at both sides. Fern tapped on Daisy's shoulder, who quickly closed her laptop.

"Hey whatcha writing?" Buster inquired, opening up the laptop with glee.

"Who do you think you are!? You can't go through my stuff!" Daisy opposed.

"We're detectives, and yes we can." Fern showed Daisy her badge.

"People are totally blind to the absolute love muffins that are Andy and Lillie," Buster grinned. "It's time we opened their eyes, by whatever means necessary. All AnLie supporters rise! For we will show them the light."

"My, my, that sounds like a battle cry!" Fern concluded. Grabbing Daisy by the arm she said, "You're coming with us."

* _ECPD Interrogation Room. 5:00 pm_ *

Buster and Fern entered the room holding Daisy Lundgren. Her mother sat in the room by her, the older moose snorting at the sight of Fern and Buster.

"This has to be some sort of sick joke." Mrs. Lundgren said.

"We came to talk to your daughter, please don't interfere." Fern said darkly.

"TARU's going through the laptop," Buster began. "I don't know what they'll find but I'm sure it'll be interesting."

Daisy's breathing slowed a little.

"So tell us about the message. What was it about, and who were you sending it to?" Fern demanded.

"Who are you to talk to me that way?" Daisy challenged.

Fern gripped the table, and a knock came from the two-way. Fern exited the room, and Detective Slayton took her place. The older woman took her place by the back wall, deciding to just watch.

"Why is he still here!?" Daisy shouted.

"Because I'm your best friend right now." Buster sat down. He stretched his arms out on the table, and intertwined his fingers.

"So Daisy, do you have any friends at school?" Buster began.

"I don't need friends. I have Andy and Lillie to keep me company. Plus, I talk to fellow fans on a forum dedicated to Andy and Company. It's a fun place where you can be yourself!" Daisy replied.

"I used to watch that show too. It always reminded me of my actual life," Buster chuckled. "LouisianaGirl24. What do you know about her?"

"I met her yesterday. We were supposed to meet at the Sugar Bowl, but I had to go straight home." Daisy replied.

"Did you two ever converse online?" Buster asked.

"We argued about AnLie a lot. She's an Andy and Cassidy shipper, Y'know!"

Lauren snorted, "Wow what a tool."

"I know right! I mean, they haven't even kissed!" Daisy defended.

"Ladonna ended up dead yesterday." Buster stated, taking the two Lundgrens aback.

"Well, Daisy came straight home." Mrs. Lundgren supplied. "She couldn't have done it!"

"What time did she get home?" Lauren asked.

"Six o'clock. But she told me that she had detention."

"I got in a fight." Daisy supplied.

Buster looked at Lauren, who raised an eyebrow.

* _Elwood City High school. 7:00 am_ *

Mister Greenwood, the school principal, confirmed that Daisy had been in a fight.

"What was the fight about?" Detective Fisher asked.

"Some girls were talking about this old TV show, _Andy and Company_. The kids used to watch it."

"My little girl does too," Fisher mentioned. "What could've offended Miss Lundgren?"

"They were gushing over Andy and Cassidy, or so Daisy said. She told me that obviously they were wrong, since Andy and Lillie had gone square dancing, like I give two shakes." Mr. Greenwood expounded.

"So she got detention?" Slayton asked.

"No," the principal replied. "It was her first offense. Slap on the wrist, and she's on her way."

"Thank you for your time." The Detectives left.

"She lied to her mother." Lauren said.

"What was your first clue? The bratty behavior or the hours long alibi?" Robert questioned. Lauren smirked.

"Look," Robert sighed. "When I was in high school, even I only got an hour long detention."

"She could still be innocent." Lauren argued.

"That's why Buster and Fern are putting the squeeze on her internet friends." Fisher replied.

*break*

"I hate Andy and Cassidy too," one girl said. "I prefer Andy and Custer, but that's just me. They're more likely than any of Andy's 'girlfriends', but, to each his or her own."

"So did Daisy ever come to you guys for support?" Fern asked.

Another girl said, "She would come to the forums to rag on AnLie haters. We agreed with her that it was pretty pointless to hate a ship."

"Um," Buster looked at the first girl.

"Without a reason." The second girl added.

The Junior Detectives nodded, and walked away. Fern was seething.

"What's wrong?" Buster asked.

"Ladonna is dead, and all anyone gives a crap about is whether Andy dates Cassidy, Lillie, or his best friend _Custer_ for crying out loud!" Fern exclaimed.

"It's vital to the investigation," Buster reasoned.

"How?"

"You know as well as I do that Ladonna's death was no accident. This was a statement, the first shots of a war." Buster said.

"So people who disagree want to kill each other now?" Fern asked incredulously. Then she considered. "Makes sense."

"Later today, we'll see if TARU found anything." Buster said.

 _*Technical Assistance Response Unit. 4:44 pm_ *

Buster and Fern entered the Technical department with awe. They had never been to TARU's office before, and therefore all the labs, computers, and various technical equipment surprised them pleasantly.

Henry Chang, the lead technician, welcomed the two young detectives. Henry was a young man of thirty-six, making his way up to ladder to technical captain. He led Buster and Fern to Daisy's computer.

"We found suspicious messages to a 'Lookout32'." Chang summarized.

"What do you mean by suspicious?" Buster asked.

"Daisy offered him two hundred bucks if he was willing to do a job."

"What did he say?" Fern asked.

"He asked what was the job. Daisy told him that he could help kick start an epic war, by taking out the leader of the opposition." Chang answered.

"And he said?" Fern asked.

"Yes."

* _1913 Tetris Avenue, Elwood City. 6:00 pm_ *

Four SWAT vans littered the sidewalk, alongside a dozen or more police cruisers. Detectives Fisher and Slayton wore protective vests, gripping their service pistols with both hands.

SWAT Team One sent in a battering ram, collapsing the door. Two more SWAT teams rushed in the house.

"Police! Put your hands up!" One trooper shouted. When Team Two entered the living room, they found a dark skinned young man of seventeen playing _Call of Duty_. He offered his hands with a bored look, and police officers arrested him.

* _ECPD Interrogation Room. 8:00 pm_ *

Detective Fisher entered with Buster. Fisher sighed and complained, "I could be eating dinner right now. Now I've got to pay the nanny double."

"Do I look like I care?" The teen asked.

"I get cranky when I'm hungry. And trust me," Fisher ground out, "You won't like it when I'm cranky."

"Do you know a Sunflower?" Buster asked.

"I talked to her online a few times. Why?" The teen leaned in. "What's a young guy like you do with that information."

"Buddy," Fisher warned. "Back off."

"Oh? Is the big bad detective gonna beat me up? I'm not scared of you." The teen bravely challenged.

"Oh you should be." Fisher whispered.

"So what's your name?" Buster asked.

"Charles. Charles Gray. Why? Is this going down on my record?" Charles asked.

"If you committed a murder, then yes." Fisher said.

"I ain't murder nobody." Charles denied, throwing his arm.

"You talked to Sunshine. About what exactly?" Buster continued. The teen scoffed in defiance. Fisher grabbed Charles by the collar, dragging him from his feet.

"Answer the question, or I'll make your night a living hell." Fisher uttered in a low voice.

"Do it, pig! I ain't afraid of you!" Charles challenged. Fisher's face turned dark, before a hard knock sounded on the two-way. Fisher dropped the teenager, and exited the room, Fern entering in his place.

"Mm, mm, mm! My little lady do you look fine," Charles cat-called Fern, who set her jaw.

"How about we go grab some shakes?" Charles asked.

"How about we _shake_ some information out of you?" Fern dropped an evidence bag on the table. In it, contained a butcher's knife. "Recognize this?"

Charles raised an eyebrow and leaned back. "It's my mama's knife. She uses it to cut meat."

"CSU found human DNA on it." Buster supplied. "And no, not fingerprints."

Charles' face turned dark. "So what? How do you know it was me?"

"We have your private messages to Sunshine. If you give her up, and admit that she paid you to do it, the DA might give save you from a life sentence." Buster offered. Charles looked at Buster, then at Fern.

He winked at Fern and said, "Visit me in prison."

*break*

"This is outrageous!" Mrs. Lundgren was enraged. "My daughter didn't do anything!"

"Oh shut up!" Fisher shouted. "Your daughter lied through her stinking teeth. She didn't get no detention! She barely got a slap on the wrist!"

"How dare you talk to me like that! I'll have your badge detective!" Fisher steeled and walked out. Slayton entered in his place. Buster, sitting across from the Lundgrens, passed them the chat logs.

"Read it, Mrs. Lundgren." Buster instructed. As the older Lundgren read, her anger took a new turn. She slapped her daughter.

"Mom!" Daisy cried.

"How dare you refer to me as your mother! You've shamed me!" Mrs. Lundgren got up and left, saying, "Give the brat what she deserves!"

"I didn't do anything!" Daisy protested.

Buster locked his fingers together. Cocking his head and looking downward.

"So it was just a joke?" Buster asked.

"What?"

"Because, when we searched the place, we found two hundred dollars in cash in Lookout32's bed." Buster added, "We know money changed hands."

"That's what went down in the two hours between getting off of school, and going home." Lauren supplied.

"Tell me something, why does it matter who Andy gets with?" Buster asked.

"He deserves to be happy!" Daisy cried.

"Well can't he be happy with Cassidy? What about Molly, or Alexis, or Francesca!" Buster stood.

"They're not right for him! None of them are!" Daisy covered her ears.

"You would kill someone for being a poor matchmaker?" Buster asked.

"Yes!" Daisy shouted. "It disgusts me to see Andy with anyone other than his perfect love! They'll be married! They'll have perfect mixed-species babies! They're the canon pairing!"

Buster backed up, having on last card to play.

"Were you going to meet with Ladonna at the Sugar Bowl?"

"No," Daisy confessed. "I set her up. And if Charles hadn't agreed, I would've killed her myself."

Buster stared at her in a neutral manner. Lauren walked over to arrest Daisy, and led her out of the room. Buster exited behind them, looking out as Daisy was taken to lockup.

Fisher sighed.

"It's been a long night everyone." Chief Neill offered. "Let's all get some rest."

The Chief and Fisher walked off, but Buster and Fern stayed in place, their gazed focused on the cages.

 **Created by: The Ultimate Combo**

 **The proceeding story was entirely fictional, any references to real people or events are entirely coincidental.**

 **Inspired by: Law & Order: Criminal Intent**

 **Written, Created, and Produced by: TheUltimateCombo**

 **Starring:**

 **Buster Baxter, Fern Walters**

 **Lauren Slayton, Robert Fisher**

 **Alan Neill, Jennifer Brooks**

 **Charlie Everdean**

 **With,**

 **Ladonna, Bud, Madison, Cisley, and Rufus Compson**

 **George, Daisy, and Mrs. Lundgren**

 **Girls 1 and 2**

 **Principal Greenwood**

 **Charles Grey**

 **And Henry Chang**

 _ **Arthur**_ **© Marc Brown**

 _ **Elwood City: Criminal Intent**_ **© TUC Productions**


End file.
